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I'm looking to purchase a mower. I just bought a new house its setting on 1 acre of land. It's mostly flat but there are a couple of steep inclines around a couple of the ditches(I'm on a corner lot). Its a very clean piece of property. We just bought the house at the beginning of this winter so I can't say what kind of grass as its all been dead the entire time we've lived here. Anyways, I'm wanting to spend around $1000 preferably on a used mower as I feel like its possible to get way more for your money that way. I'm looking for something that is strictly for personal use that will give me lots of years of great service without too much hassle. I dont know much about mowers other than more power, wider cut, and tighter turning radius are all good things lol. As far as names, I really dont know what is considered good and what is considered junk and what models of the "good" names are considered junk. I always thought B&S made a good engine but after reading around it appears that's not the case, I guess. I have no idea how many hours are too many hours or how many are considered low. Have no idea how to judge a mower that didnt have an hour monitor or anything else. Also I should probably mention that I'm not mechanically "dumb" lol. I know my way around cars, workshops, and can work on mowers as well if I have to. So no need to explain silly stuff like carb vs fuel injection, diesel vs gas, or whatever else. I just dont know anything about names, new features, and whatever else with mowers.

So school me. Whats the best thing I can get used for my money? And what things do I need to look out for when inspecting them?

I should probably also mention that I'm looking for either a riding lawnmower or a walk behind. Of course I'd love a good ZTR but after shopping around I dont think thats going to happen. I have seen a couple in that price range but I dont know if they are decent or not.

Found a John Deere D130 in my price range with a trailer. Is that a decent mower?

For that money don't expect much.
Clearing sales / moving sales will be your best bet to get a mower in good condition.
After that a freelance mower repair shop might have some reasonable trade ins, check if they will give warranty.

Mowers with a manual gear box will give you the longest service life , they go forever.
You can tell a manual tranny because you have to come to a complete stop before you can change gears, Just like a real tractor crash box.

After that a varidrive is the next most robust.

If it says Hydro any where on the machine walk away on old machines they can be very expensive to fix.

When buying used, the care of the previous owner is far more important than the brand.
A clean machine with no rust on the mower or deck is a good sign .

If you feel like getting confused then www.tractordata.com is a good place to go for specifications, original prices & manufacturing dates.

Don't be afraid of buying a very old mowr.
If it is still running well after 20 years then it will probably run another 20 with a little TLC.
If it is just running after 5 years good chance it won't go another 5

Since you say you have some steep inclines I'm thinking something like a used Exmark Metro walk behind with a 48 inch deck. They can usually be had in that price range and are solid low maintenance machines. Here's one currently for sale online for info purposes. That one has a floating deck which is uncommon. You're more likely to find them with fixed decks, which should be fine for your purposes. A Craigslist search will usually turn up some candidates. Scag and Bob-Cat also make similar machines that you may want to consider. The older Bob-Cat units are branded as "Ransomes." You could add a riding platform (sulky) as many do with this type of machine. An upgrade would be a hydro-drive unit but I don't think you'll find one worth owning in your price range.

https://sleequipment.com/used-exmark-metro-48in-17hp.html#product_tabs_additional_tabbed

You might be better off with an older machine, get one at a good price, and rebuild what you need too a little at a time, just repair the absolute necessary at first. I had 3 mowers (still have the two black ones) as you can see, the 17.5 HP black one was $100.00 all it needed was valves adjusted, blades and a belt, new spindles, air & fuel filters and inner tubes for the rear tires, oil change.... about $148.00 ..RUNS GREAT !

The 17.5 HP red one I got for $60.00,. guy was moving and it wouldn't start, had to get it out (lucky for me) only needed the valves adjusted to start, bought new battery, inner tubes for all tires, blades, spindles, ALL belts, rebuilt the carb, new fuel lines, air & fuel filters, and a MAJOR cleanup, about, $ 235.00 , just sold it to my stepson last June for $400.00 (family ya know)

The last big black one (21 HP Twin) the first one of these I bought, paid $300.00 for it, but went a lil overboard after I found a transaxle for $79.00 then I decided to start rebuilding it entirely, after I saw how good it runs, engine only needed valves adjusted, new filters, plugs, oil change & filter, but then I rebuilt & painted the deck, and a boatload of other parts that I really didn't need, but replaced as I want to repair /rebuild the entire machine, ( still working on that, ) so in TOTAL so far on this one, I've got about $650.00, plan on finishing a few more things and painting the entire machine, I do my own repairs/ overhauls/maintenance so my labor of love is freebie. here's several pics of working on these things, if your mechanically inclined this might be the way to go, like the TV show.. Fixer-Upper !! .. :thumbsup:

View attachment 36322...View attachment 36323...View attachment 36324...View attachment 36325...View attachment 36326...View attachment 36327...View attachment 36328...View attachment 36329...View attachment 36333View attachment 36332View attachment 36331View attachment 36334

Personally I like the older Murray's because most all the parts are still available, and they're so easy to work on, mine are 2004 & 2005 models I wouldn't go smaller than a 15HP (no Tecumseh's.. parts are hard to find) I've worked on Brigg's all my life and parts are plentiful so I make them my preference, anyway good luck in your search for a machine. ..... Boobala

I'd offer to avoid any craftsmans with manual gear box from Dana. Those are junk. And chinese junk to boot.

Craftsman used to sell good mowers, but they really went downhill. and Sears is reported to be closing too.

7394 said:

I'd offer to avoid any craftsmans with manual gear box from Dana. Those are junk. And chinese junk to boot.

Craftsman used to sell good mowers, but they really went downhill. and Sears is reported to be closing too.

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Most all the mowers after about the 2010 models (excepting some of the expensive older machines,) have been going downhill, I'm lucky here in Fl. because of our climate, there's a boatload of used machines available most of the year, and the mower graveyards are rakin in a fortune.

If I had the space, I'd pick-up this Huskee GARDEN Tractor, (it's got the better equipment for using accessories, snow-plow, grass collector etc.) dependant if it sounde & runs well.

https://ocala.craigslist.org/grd/d/huskee-riding-mower/6531077773.html...

another...

https://huntsville.craigslist.org/grd/d/vintage-garden-tractors/6521789750.html

I like these oldies but i have too many projects going now. I like freebies better

Thanks for the responses. I was figuring I'd probably have to go with a walk behind with a pull riding thing (sulky as someone called it). As thats the best thing I've seen in my price range. Only problem is I keep seeing them with fairly small cutting widths.. 36" or so. Would like to get one like that Exmark metro with 48".

And funny you guys suggest I get an old one lol. I have a Case 448 in the garage that I'm working on. It runs but the PTO clutch is worn on it and the blades wont engage anymore. Anyways, its not a great machine to have on an incline for a couple of reasons.. it tends to be top heavy also it doesnt have a certain valve to keep it from getting away from you on an incline(cant remember what its called). Only place I've found the clutch for it it's going to cost me about $70 to rebuild it. Which I will do. Its a great little work tractor for hauling junk around. Or I might fix it and sell it. Idk. I just figure I might be better off depending on something else for mowing.

badninja said:

Thanks for the responses. I was figuring I'd probably have to go with a walk behind with a pull riding thing (sulky as someone called it). As thats the best thing I've seen in my price range. Only problem is I keep seeing them with fairly small cutting widths.. 36" or so. Would like to get one like that Exmark metro with 48".

And funny you guys suggest I get an old one lol. I have a Case 448 in the garage that I'm working on. It runs but the PTO clutch is worn on it and the blades wont engage anymore. Anyways, its not a great machine to have on an incline for a couple of reasons.. it tends to be top heavy also it doesnt have a certain valve to keep it from getting away from you on an incline(cant remember what its called). Only place I've found the clutch for it it's going to cost me about $70 to rebuild it. Which I will do. Its a great little work tractor for hauling junk around. Or I might fix it and sell it. Idk. I just figure I might be better off depending on something else for mowing.

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WELL... there's always goat's, sheep, horse's, cattle, or... gravel, asphalt, concrete, or astro-turf .... :laughing:..:laughing:

Damn ! .. it happened AGAIN !! I didn't mean that. ....... OH YES you did Boobala ! .. We know how you get !! ..

Reality check time
1) you are on 1 acre - house-deck-shed -gardens - trees- carport/garage so whit is left 1/2 to 2/3 acre at best.
I have commercial customers who use Greenfields 30" 32" & 34" to cut grass on this sized property all day every day 10 to 20 yards a day.
You are not mowing the great plains.
I have 1/2 acre of yard and 3 acres of verg to mow around the workshop and if I don't have a customers mower to road test I use a 30" rover rancher II from 1960.

2) you don't want to spend any more than $ 1000 but want something with a 48" deck but don't want an old one which might need some fixing up.

Well I would really like the winning lottery numbers and I got a better chance of getting them than you have fulfilling your wants.

On that sized property throw in some shrubs and a veggie patch then you will only have 10 minutes worth mowing with a Lawn Boy and you should be able to do that for under $ 500 including the mower

bertsmobile1 said:

Reality check time
1) you are on 1 acre - house-deck-shed -gardens - trees- carport/garage so whit is left 1/2 to 2/3 acre at best.
I have commercial customers who use Greenfields 30" 32" & 34" to cut grass on this sized property all day every day 10 to 20 yards a day.
You are not mowing the great plains.
I have 1/2 acre of yard and 3 acres of verg to mow around the workshop and if I don't have a customers mower to road test I use a 30" rover rancher II from 1960.

2) you don't want to spend any more than $ 1000 but want something with a 48" deck but don't want an old one which might need some fixing up.

Well I would really like the winning lottery numbers and I got a better chance of getting them than you have fulfilling your wants.

On that sized property throw in some shrubs and a veggie patch then you will only have 10 minutes worth mowing with a Lawn Boy and you should be able to do that for under $ 500 including the mower

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Well there's the best answer I read here so far ! ..

Let me know when you come pick this unit up and I'll treat you to lunch.

https://providence.craigslist.org/grd/d/48-bobcat-ransomes-walk-behind/6515255416.html

bertsmobile1 said:

Well I would really like the winning lottery numbers and I got a better chance of getting them than you have fulfilling your wants.

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We'll see. You start buyin lotto tickets and I'll keep shopping.

Anyways, I fail to see where your logic is grounded especially when a couple of people here have already given me some leads on machines around my price range that would "fulfill my wants" such as that Exmark Metro. Damned unicorns are getting more common these days I guess huh?

Darryl G said:

Let me know when you come pick this unit up and I'll treat you to lunch.

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I'd definitely look at it. It's a little out of driving range for me though, unfortunately.

The only real problems with belt drive walk behinds is that reverse isn't really much of a reverse and squeezing the turning levers can be too much for users with low hand strength/small hands. It can get tiresome even for those with a good grip if you have a lot of obstacles/tight quarters. A lot of people would rather just plop themselves on a machine. But with the out-front deck, good maneuverability and the option to add a riding platform, walk behinds are very efficient and versatile. And 48s are small enough to mow most areas yet big enough to knock out larger lawns. And they fit inside the wheel wells of most pick-up trucks! If I could only have one mower it would be a 48 inch walk behind, but hydro, not belt drive. I'm spoiled. :laughing:

Years ago my son had a landscaping business, I did a lot of mowing with him for several years, he used a 36in. and a 52 in. (I think it was a 52") SCAG'S anyway, they both had sulky's ( Jungle-Wheels ) brand, and those beat the livin schitt out of your kidneys, bouncing around and yes reversing, especially with a sulky was a PITA, and the repeticious squeezing of the handles, helped to my carpal-tunnel problem (eventual surgery). We all have OUR idea's of a good mower, but in the end, after all is said and done, HE has to live with it .. NOT us ! ..:thumbsup:

What do you guys think about this one? I am waiting on a response about it. The person still has it but they couldn't tell me how many hours it has. It looks to be in really nice, clean, and good shape judging by the pics. He's asking $800 for it. Whats a reasonable amount of hours for that Kohler? Other things I should ask about/keep an eye out for.

Edit: Well Crap, it wont let me post links yet so I can't attach it. Its a Cub Cadet LTX1050 50in 24HP V-Twin Kohler Hydrostatic Drive. If you google it you can find a link to it on Home Depot. That's what I was trying to link here.

I recommend you research the Kohler Courage engine. http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/search.php?searchid=6589879

You'd be better off with that mower variant with the Kawi engine IMO.

Darryl G said:

I recommend you research the Kohler Courage engine. http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/search.php?searchid=6589879

You'd be better off with that mower variant with the Kawi engine IMO.

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That link isnt taking me to anything. But after a quick google search, I see its definitely an engine with a bad rep. Unfortunately the one I'm looking at is the only one this person has. So a kawasaki isnt any option atm unless another one pops up. Is that Courage whats in the one I'm looking at?

Stop and ask yourself.
Why is this person selling a current model mower for around 1/2 the new price ?
particularly in the light that there were a lot of teething problems with the engine this one has fitted .

My link was supposed to be the result of a search on this site for "Kohler Courage" where there are 3 pages of threads. You can tell just by browsing the thread titles that it's an engine that it's probably better to steer clear of. And yes that mower has the Courage in it if it's a Kohler. I'd make sure there are no current engine problems and you're on notice that you could have problems in the future. If it hasn't failed yet it might have a good one in it. :smile:

Darryl G said:

My link was supposed to be the result of a search on this site for "Kohler Courage" where there are 3 pages of threads. You can tell just by browsing the thread titles that it's an engine that it's probably better to steer clear of. And yes that mower has the Courage in it if it's a Kohler. I'd make sure there are no current engine problems and you're on notice that you could have problems in the future. If it hasn't failed yet it might have a good one in it. :smile:

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lol ok. Noted. I'll probably steer clear of it.

bertsmobile1 said:

Stop and ask yourself.
Why is this person selling a current model mower for around 1/2 the new price ?

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So if the asking price is on the low, it must have issues right? So make sure I pay more to make sure it doesn't have issues? I'd say that a person could easily sell the same lemon at what you may consider a "proper" price. Only difference between you and I is; I will have paid less for my lemon lol. The fact is, that paying more money isn't going to magically make it better. A lemon is a lemon. Most people are usually going to state issues and why something is priced so low as opposed to expecting people to just know something is up with a low price tag. So for me, that low price tag doesn't mean anything. I'm going to be just as skeptical of that one as I am one that I would pay twice or 10 times that for. There is always a risk of getting a bad deal when buying used regardless of price. However, the previous reputation that this engine has speaks volumes and I will probably steer clear for that.

badninja said:

So if the asking price is on the low, it must have issues right? So make sure I pay more to make sure it doesn't have issues? I'd say that a person could easily sell the same lemon at what you may consider a "proper" price. Only difference between you and I is; I will have paid less for my lemon lol. The fact is, that paying more money isn't going to magically make it better. A lemon is a lemon. Most people are usually going to state issues and why something is priced so low as opposed to expecting people to just know something is up with a low price tag. So for me, that low price tag doesn't mean anything. I'm going to be just as skeptical of that one as I am one that I would pay twice or 10 times that for. There is always a risk of getting a bad deal when buying used regardless of price. However, the previous reputation that this engine has speaks volumes and I will probably steer clear for that.

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Try taking a slightly different tangent.
If the price is very low then the person is desperate to sell it.
There has to be a reason why they are desperate to sell it.
They could be moving interstate or to a smaller house.
They could have gottten to old to mow any more
or the mower could be total trash.

Price is no guarantee of quality but just as with a new mower, very cheap is seldom very good.
Occasionally you get mechanical idiots who sell their mower that won't start because , the battery is flat , or the spark plug is fouled or it has run out of fuel.
However they are few & far between.
The mowers other have been talking about were all quite old and thus a low price is justified due to age.
However a relatively new mower with a below market price should ring bells in an intelligent well informed purchaser with a functioning brain.
Unfortunately the glow from a glorious "bargain" seems to blind a lot of people.

bertsmobile1 said:

Try taking a slightly different tangent.
If the price is very low then the person is desperate to sell it.
There has to be a reason why they are desperate to sell it.
They could be moving interstate or to a smaller house.
They could have gottten to old to mow any more
or the mower could be total trash.

Price is no guarantee of quality but just as with a new mower, very cheap is seldom very good.
Occasionally you get mechanical idiots who sell their mower that won't start because , the battery is flat , or the spark plug is fouled or it has run out of fuel.
However they are few & far between.
The mowers other have been talking about were all quite old and thus a low price is justified due to age.
However a relatively new mower with a below market price should ring bells in an intelligent well informed purchaser with a functioning brain.
Unfortunately the glow from a glorious "bargain" seems to blind a lot of people.

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If a person were to pass everything up without even looking into it based solely on the price being too low.. They have no business buying used. There is no point. That is the point of buying used, to get a better deal. Almost anything bought used can turn out to be trash, hell new stuff can too. I've bought plenty of things in my day that were "too cheap" and came out fine on 'em. Bought stuff that was too expensive too and ended up mad as hell that it was junk. Bought an '02 Wrangler years ago(2009), Paid over $10k for it. Bought it at 62,000 miles. Had to have the transmission replaced at 69,000 miles. I was lucky to have gotten a warranty on it. But still you'd think at that price I would have gotten a good vehicle to last a while right? My brother has an old early 90's ford Explorer. He paid $250 for it. Thing had just under 180k on it.. its still running strong now at over 230k. I bought a brand new Marshall JVM410H (guitar amp)and Marshall 1960A Lead Cabinet years ago, Spent over $3,000 on them. Less than a year later I needed quick money to finish up a 1940 ford pickup I was restoring to sell as an investment. At the time the amp was the only thing I had that would bring any real money. I let it go for $1,000. The guy stole it from me. Still had stickers on it and tags hanging off of both the amp and cab. Absolute mint condition and babied like hell. Money paid or asked means squat and shouldn't factor into a decision anymore than how much money you will be saving/spending. What does matter is listening to the seller, watching out for fishy things, thoroughly inspecting your potential purchase, and making the best decision you can off of the knowledge given about it.

Are Kohler engines just bad in general? Or was it just the Courage? Were they good before a certain point in time? Seems most everything has B&S or Kohler. Found one with a Kohler Command Pro 15 that may be of interest if thats not something to avoid.

badninja said:

If a person were to pass everything up without even looking into it based solely on the price being too low.. They have no business buying used. There is no point. That is the point of buying used, to get a better deal. Almost anything bought used can turn out to be trash, hell new stuff can too. I've bought plenty of things in my day that were "too cheap" and came out fine on 'em. Bought stuff that was too expensive too and ended up mad as hell that it was junk. Bought an '02 Wrangler years ago(2009), Paid over $10k for it. Bought it at 62,000 miles. Had to have the transmission replaced at 69,000 miles. I was lucky to have gotten a warranty on it. But still you'd think at that price I would have gotten a good vehicle to last a while right? My brother has an old early 90's ford Explorer. He paid $250 for it. Thing had just under 180k on it.. its still running strong now at over 230k. I bought a brand new Marshall JVM410H (guitar amp)and Marshall 1960A Lead Cabinet years ago, Spent over $3,000 on them. Less than a year later I needed quick money to finish up a 1940 ford pickup I was restoring to sell as an investment. At the time the amp was the only thing I had that would bring any real money. I let it go for $1,000. The guy stole it from me. Still had stickers on it and tags hanging off of both the amp and cab. Absolute mint condition and babied like hell. Money paid or asked means squat and shouldn't factor into a decision anymore than how much money you will be saving/spending. What does matter is listening to the seller, watching out for fishy things, thoroughly inspecting your potential purchase, and making the best decision you can off of the knowledge given about it.

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I agree. Last summer I purchased a Toro Z Master 320 for $700 just because it was so low. I knew I could not go wrong unless everything was broken. It had 700 hours and needed all new tires. They were all bald. I used it one time and the PTO cut out on me 30 min in. Took it home and started working. Long story short. $300 later it is in perfect running order. Took all winter to do it because I do not like the cold. I have only put about 12 hours work into it. I would say I could sell it today for around $3000.

I prefer Kawasaki engines but Kohler Command Pro engines are good commercial engines. Briggs & Stratton makes some good engines too such as the Vanguards. The Kohler Courage is a budget engine and frankly it shows.

badninja said:

Are Kohler engines just bad in general? Or was it just the Courage? Were they good before a certain point in time? Seems most everything has B&S or Kohler. Found one with a Kohler Command Pro 15 that may be of interest if thats not something to avoid.

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Kohlers are the next step up from Briggs and they command a higher price.
Kohler make cheap & nasty engines just the same as Briggs make cheap & nasty engines to go on cheap & nasty mowers which seem to be about 60% of the market sales wise.

The Courage was made to be a machine assembled engine so has a bucket crankshaft and is a wonderful design,
However there was a problem when they reverted to a cast crank ( cheaper than the forged crank )
To get the same strength a cast crank has to be substantially heavier and the extra weight created problems with some engines.
The top plate is known to come loose and then the block cracks down the exhaust side of the cylinder.
Kohler sorted this out by making the bolts a little longer & putting some blue loctite on them.

The vibrations from the heavier crank is also known to fracture the rivets in the decompressor.

OTOH slip the belts off, pull the flywheel & alternator off and the top cover comes off and the cam can be replaced without touching the crank.
If you overfill the engine with oil it dosen't pour out of the pushrod tube.
you can run them across much steeper slopes without the engine seizing.
And for me the big winner, the oil filter hangs down from the top plate so it is easy to get at and clean to change.

The problem was probably due to one one mould on the casting machine being at the thinnest end of the spec range and the latter Courages seem fairly fault free.

Down here I have only seen it happen on the larger single cylinder engines 17 Hp & over and only to the engine fitted to Husqvarnas.

Darryl G said:

I prefer Kawasaki engines but Kohler Command Pro engines are good commercial engines. Briggs & Stratton makes some good engines too such as the Vanguards. The Kohler Courage is a budget engine and frankly it shows.

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bertsmobile1 said:

Kohlers are the next step up from Briggs and they command a higher price.
Kohler make cheap & nasty engines just the same as Briggs make cheap & nasty engines to go on cheap & nasty mowers which seem to be about 60% of the market sales wise.

The Courage was made to be a machine assembled engine so has a bucket crankshaft and is a wonderful design,
However there was a problem when they reverted to a cast crank ( cheaper than the forged crank )
To get the same strength a cast crank has to be substantially heavier and the extra weight created problems with some engines.
The top plate is known to come loose and then the block cracks down the exhaust side of the cylinder.
Kohler sorted this out by making the bolts a little longer & putting some blue loctite on them.

The vibrations from the heavier crank is also known to fracture the rivets in the decompressor.

OTOH slip the belts off, pull the flywheel & alternator off and the top cover comes off and the cam can be replaced without touching the crank.
If you overfill the engine with oil it dosen't pour out of the pushrod tube.
you can run them across much steeper slopes without the engine seizing.
And for me the big winner, the oil filter hangs down from the top plate so it is easy to get at and clean to change.

The problem was probably due to one one mould on the casting machine being at the thinnest end of the spec range and the latter Courages seem fairly fault free.

Down here I have only seen it happen on the larger single cylinder engines 17 Hp & over and only to the engine fitted to Husqvarnas.

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Thanks for the information guys. Excellent help. The mower I found is a 2006 Toro SFS 36 Proline Walk Behind with that Kohler Command Pro 15 on it. He's only asking $600 for that and some jungle wheels. However he says the reason being is that the blades wont engage. Was mowing one day and they just stopped. Said it happened before and he replaced the PTO clutch and that fixed it. When it happened this time he replaced the PTO clutch again but no luck. Said he has also replaced the PTO Switch, belts and blades while trying to figure out the issue. At this point he's tired of dumping money into it. Says everything else functions perfectly.

I've never worked on a walk behind and have no idea what kind of issues could occur to keep the blades from engaging. Maybe you guys could shed some light on it?

badninja said:

Thanks for the information guys. Excellent help. The mower I found is a Toro SFS 36 Proline Walk Behind with that Kohler Command Pro 15 on it. He's only asking $600 for that and some jungle wheels. However he says the reason being is that the blades wont engage. Was mowing one day and they just stopped. Said it happened before and he replaced the PTO clutch and that fixed it. When it happened this time he replaced the PTO clutch again but no luck. Said he has also replaced the PTO Switch, belts and blades while trying to figure out the issue. At this point he's tired of dumping money into it. Says everything else functions perfectly.

I've never worked on a walk behind and have no idea what kind of issues could occur to keep the blades from engaging. Maybe you guys could shed some light on it?

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Please start a new thread " Toro SFS 36 Walk behind, blade do not engage " or similar.
If you stay here, then only the people currently responding will be alerted.
And putting it in the Toro section will also be beneficial to you and to others with the same problem.

And the last word you will hear from me as I know nothing specific about Toro walk behinds is.
Go to Toro.com.
Toro , bless their pointy little horns , have just about all of their IPL's & Service Manuals on line as a free PDF download.
Downside is there is a bloody lot of them so without the numbers off the serial plate it will be a big search
Good side is you won't have to put up with me any more .
Good luck hope you get many fruitfull hours in behind your mower

Found a Swisher Z-Max XZT 60" Zero Turn with a 25HP Briggs. It has 506 hours. Looks to be in good shape and well taken care of judging by pics. He's asking $1,250. Is Swisher any good? How about that B&S 25hp?

Honda has some good mowers in this range like Honda HRX217HZA, Honda HRX217VKA or Honda HRX217HYA. And also Toro TimeMaster (30") can also be a good choice. If you want larger deck you can also go for some 2nd hand product.

I think older is better no matter what the brand is. I'm getting ready to buy a 73 John Deere 110 for $400. From the pics and talking to the owner looks to be in ex. shape. Family owner, serviced, garage kept with a 46" deck. Can't get there till next weekend so hope he doesn't sell it.

Hello gents, just thought I'd update you. I finally made a purchase.. a couple of them actually. Got really excellent deals on both. I found a Kubota G1800-S with a 54" deck I picked it up for $1000 plus a bit of gas money to have the gentleman deliver it to my house. Its a 3 Cylinder 16HP Diesel and it has all wheel steering. After looking around, I got a killer deal on it. It runs very good, steering is super tight, The mower is really clean and was well taken care of. It has some scratches and a cracked lense. But overall its been a really well kept mower. No rust at all. all in all I'm very happy with my purchase.

My other purchase is a push mower for the steeper ditches and some tight areas. I picked up an older Honda HR215. Got it for $60. Starts on first pull no problem. I need to get a cable to get the self propel working again but its not a big deal.

badninja said:

Hello gents, just thought I'd update you. I finally made a purchase.. a couple of them actually. Got really excellent deals on both. I found a Kubota G1800-S with a 54" deck I picked it up for $1000 plus a bit of gas money to have the gentleman deliver it to my house. Its a 3 Cylinder 16HP Diesel and it has all wheel steering. After looking around, I got a killer deal on it. It runs very good, steering is super tight, The mower is really clean and was well taken care of. It has some scratches and a cracked lense. But overall its been a really well kept mower. No rust at all. all in all I'm very happy with my purchase.

My other purchase is a push mower for the steeper ditches and some tight areas. I picked up an older Honda HR215. Got it for $60. Starts on first pull no problem. I need to get a cable to get the self propel working again but its not a big deal.

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Well done.
Get the genuine Honda cable and buy a couple of spare springs, they are prone to breaking.
Put a few drops of cable lube ( from a push bike shop) NOT WD 40 or similar down all of the cables a couple of times a season.
The throttle cable being multi strand rusts out at the dip in the bottom.